KEiiNO's Sami Joik Wins the Televote

MAY 15 2019 · 12:30

KEiiNO · "Spirit in the Sky" · Norway · 2019 Placement: 6 · Score: 331 · Language: English, Northern Sami · Composers: Alexandra Rotan, Tom Hugo, Fred Buljo, Alexander Olsson, Henrik Tala · Venue: Expo Tel Aviv · Host: Tel Aviv, Israel · Type: performance innovation · Broadcast: streaming era Alexandra Rotan sings the pop hook in English. Tom Hugo bridges. Then Fred Buljo, a Sami musician from Kautokeino, drops into the song's final minute with a traditional joik — a throat-sung melodic form that predates written European music by a thousand years. The arena visibly shifts. Europe gives KEiiNO 291 televote points, the highest of the night. Juries drop them to 6th overall but the public's message is clear. Context Norway's NRK had been running Melodi Grand Prix since 1960. KEiiNO formed specifically for the 2019 selection — three musicians with distinct practices agreeing the Sami element was non-negotiable. No Eurovision entry had previously placed joik as a structural climax. Sami is a protected indigenous language in Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Russia. Legacy KEiiNO's televote victory became a data point cited by fans arguing juries undervalue non-Western musical traditions. The joik introduced millions of European viewers to Sami culture overnight. Buljo has since collaborated on indigenous cultural programming across the Nordic public broadcasters, and KEiiNO remained a working group through 2022.